Furnace for heating or smelting metals.



' No. 698,495. Pa'tented Apr. 29, 1902,.

H. H. HEWITT. FURNACE FOB HEATING 0B SMELTING METALS.

(Application flld om. 10, 1901.

(N0 Model.)

THE uonms PEYER no. PHQTouYHQ. WASHINGYON. o. c.

UNITED STATES t PATENT OFFICE.

HERBERT H. HEWITT, OF BUFFALO, NEW YORK.

FURNACE FOR HEATING OR SMEL TlNG METALS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of LetterslIPatent No. 698,495, dated April29, 1902.

Application filed October 16 190l. Serial No. 78,884. (No model.)

To a whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HERBERT H. HEWITT, a citizen of the United States,and a resident of the city of Bufialo, in the county of Erie, State ofNew York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Furnacesfor Heating or Smelting Metals, ofwhich the following is a full, clear,and exact description.

In the construction of oil or gas furnaces for heating or smeltingmetals much difficulty has been experienced in determining the properdimensions for the most perfect combustion of the fuel. Ordinarily, suchfurnaces are built up of fire-brick confined by exterior metal bands orbuckstays, the top of the furnace being a fixed part of the structureand the amount of space in the furnace or combustion-chamber being fixedand unalterable. space or internal volume of the combustion chamber thatinsures the most perfect combustion and the best results at onetempera-- ture or under certain atmospheric conditions or with certainclasses of metal do not produce like good results under otherconditions.

My present invention has for its object to provide a furnace in whichthe amount of space for combustion may be variedin order to adapt thefurnace for most efiective work under the varying conditions to which itmay be applied t In its broadest scope the invention consists inproviding the furnace with an adjustable diaphragm, roof, or cover,whereby the internal space of the combustion-chamber may be varied.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a view in centralvertical section through a furnace embodying my invention. Fig. 2 is aplan view.

Preferably, although not essentially, the furnace is of circular shapeand consists of an iron or steel boiler-plate shell A, resting on asuitable foundation or platform B and provided with a pavement O and avertical lining D, of fire-brick or like refractory material. Thefurnace will be provided with holes a in suitable number for theburners, that will admit oil, gas, or like fuel, and will. be providedalso with one or more suitable In practice it is found that. the

openings a for charging the furnace and with one or more openings a fromwhich the molten metal will be tapped or withdrawn.

The roof or cover E of the furnace is supported so that it may beconveniently raised and lowered in order to enable the interior space orarea of the combustion-chamber of the furnace to be varied. Preferablythe roof or cover E is of circular shape and of such size as to fitsnugly in the interior of the furnace. As shown, the roof or cover E islined upon its under side with fire-brick, held in place by suitablemetal bars and bolts, and this cover is preferably provided with anopening e,through which the products of combustion will pass. As shown,the diameter of the opening e is small as compared with the diameter ofthe cover E, so that it will not interfere with the action of the coveror diaphragm E in defining the effective volume of thecombustion-chamber. Any suitable means may be employed for suspendingand raising and lowering the cover. I have shown the cover as providedwith chains e leading therefrom, and it will be readily understood thatthese chains may pass to a winding-shaft or the cover can be suspendeddirectly from the arm of a pneumatic or bydraulic lift.

In the embodiment of the invention shown the cover E forms adiaphragmwhereby the interior area of the combustion-chamber may be varied asdesired.

One advantage in adj ustably suspending the roof or cover E is that itcan be raised entirely clear of the furnace, thus permitting the furnaceto be charged from the top when desired.

It is manifest that the precise construction of roof or cover above setforth may be varied without departing from the spirit of the inventionas claimed.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as-new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is-

1. A furnace of the character described having a combustion-chamber theWall whereof is perforated to admit the fuel-supply and a vertically-adjustable cover or diaphragm extending over and serving to define theefiective volume of said combustion-chamber.

2. A furnace of the character described having a combustion-chamber thewall whereof is perforated to admit the fuel-supply and a vertically-adjustable cover or diaphragm extending over and serving to define theeffective volume of the combustion-chamber,said cover or diaphragm beingprovided with an opening of small diameter for the escape of products ofcombustion.

3. A furnace of the character described having a combustion-chamberperforated to admit the fuel-supply and a Vertically-adjustable cover ordiaphragm extending over and serving to define the effective volume ofthe combustion-chamber, the diameter of said cover or diaphragm beingsufficiently smaller than the interior diameter of the body of thecombustion=chamber to permit said cover or

